Foundation pads or mats as they are sometimes referred to are used in a variety of settings, and particularly to provide a foundation for devices which support heavy loads, including by way of example without limitation, heavy equipment such as truck mounted or similar self-propelled devices, construction equipment, cranes, utility trucks and tree care vehicles, trailers or the like, where a jack, outrigger or similar support device may be used to create a larger footprint to increase the stability of the equipment by the use of a temporary support extending from the main structure. The equipment itself may rest on or move over the pad as well, including but not limited to cranes on crawler tracks, and other motorized, or non-motorized equipment such as trucks, dump trucks, earth moving equipment, heavy haul trailers and the like.
By way of example, without intending to be limiting, equipment may have an outrigger arm extending outwardly from the equipment and a leg extending downwardly, both the arm and leg may be hydraulically operated. The leg may come to rest on a platform or foundation to create the larger footprint and exerts the weight of the equipment onto the surface that it is in contact with. A combination of outriggers may be used by the equipment, for example four outriggers are commonly used with heavy outrigger enabled equipment. The total weight of the equipment and any additional components, including a load supported by a lifting device will be exerted on the combination of outriggers. The foundation pad prevents the stabilizer leg or jack or equipment from breaking through the ground surface, whether soil, rock, asphalt or concrete, or exceeding the allowable or ultimate ground bearing capacity of the surface. Where not properly supported, the equipment can tip, or lean which can cause the equipment to be out of level. Where the equipment is used to lift, it can lose a significant amount of lifting capacity when in a slightly tipped or leaning state. The pad prevents movement of the support or equipment and prevents tipping or rolling over of the equipment. A pad generally has a top wall on which the support device rests and a bottom wall in contact with the ground surface and at least one side wall.